A Loss of Innocence
by Rehviel
Summary: During the timeskip, Naruto and Jiraiya are recalled to Konoha. While there, Naruto is accused of a crime he didn't commit, and is forced to become a missingnin with the only person who understands him: Gaara.
1. Chapter 1

This follows the main story to a point. It's during the timeskip, in which Gaara has yet to become Kazekage, and Naruto and Jiraiya have returned to Konoha temporarily on Tsunade's orders.

Chapter 1: Accusations

Naruto slurped up is noodles dejectedly. He swallowed, then turned to Iruka next to him.

"It's no fair, Iruka-sensei!" Naruto whined. "They only ever give me low-ranked missions anymore!" he gave his ramen and angry stab. "And Tsunade-baa-chan is hiding something from me, I know it!"

Iruka sighed, unable to look his old student in the eyes. He knew why Naruto was being kept back, and was, and wasn't, surprised that Naruto himself didn't get it.

"You don't think…" Naruto set his chopsticks down, face sombre. "You don't think it's 'cuz of what's inside me?"

Okay. Naruto wasn't as dense as Iruka thought he was. Change of plan.

"No, no, Naruto!" Iruka smiled. "By now, both the council and Tsunade-sama know they can count on you!"

"Then why do they only give me C and D ranked missions?!" Naruto slammed his fist onto the counter, causing old man Teuchi and Ayame to jump. Iruka looked away, silent.

Furious, Naruto flung his money on the counter and ran off before Iruka could say a word.

Iruka didn't move, just stared off after Naruto. He sighed and put his head in his hands.

'Naruto must really be angry if he paid his _own_ bill.' He thought sarcastically. '…There's no way this situation could get worse…'

Naruto blocked an uppercut, then used the momentum to send a roundhouse kick to his opponents head. They ducked, then grabbed his outstretched arm and swung him into a tree. Upon impact, he disappeared in a puff of smoke.

Naruto nodded to himself, proud that he had been able to catch his shadow clone off-guard. Glancing at the sun, he realized how late it was. He had spent the whole day training against his clones, since he had come back on too short a notice to recruit his friends, and Jiraiya had been sent on an obscure mission by Tsunade. Naruto knew that they liked to try and keep him in the dark, but the only thing that Tsunade would only send Jiraiya out for was for something to do with Orochimaru, and in turn, Sasuke. He snorted as he picked up his pack; people really underestimate his powers of deduction.

Halfway through his mental rant to Tsunade (which he would never say to her face), and only a few minutes from Konoha's main gate, he flinched. His nose's capabilities were a far cry from Kiba's abilities, but he was picking up something distinct off to the right. Without missing a beat, he jumped away from his original path and headed out toward the heavy scent.

Naruto didn't know what he expected, but it certainly wasn't this.

A group of Konoha-nin, from Genin to Special Jounins, were sprawled across the training field. From the look of their blunted weapons, they had been playing in a mock-battle. However, the kunai that were sprouting from their fresh-dead bodies could put scalpels to shame.

Taking cautious steps, Naruto wove through the dead bodies, looking for any survivors. His hopes had risen when a Chunins' hand had fallen from her lap, but it was for naught. A quick glance at her slit jugular proved otherwise.

Having checked for survivors and making sure not to touch any evidence, Naruto got a good distance away before letting his stomach rebel. He cowered there, shivering, for a few minutes, then stumbled off as fast as he could to Konoha to report the murders.

Sakura watched as her blond friend paced back and forth in front of Tsunade's office. Once she had heard the news, she had immediately wished someone else, even herself, had found it. Even though he wasn't responsible for their deaths, he felt guilty, as if the killer had left the guilt behind for whoever found them. She shook her head to rid herself of these thoughts; she had to cheer him up.

"It's alright, Naruto." She smiled. "I'm sure the autopsy squad will be able to figure out who did this, and they can get what they deserve!" She made a fist, then used a toned-down version of Lee's 'Nice Guy Pose.'

Anything Naruto may have said back was drowned out by chatter coming from the direction of the meeting room. A moment later, Tsunade appeared, chasing after the two head councilors, Homura Mitokado and Koharu Utatane, and several ANBU in tow. It didn't look pretty; Tsunade was yelling at the top of her lungs about something, and both Homura and Koharu were ignoring her.

"Baa-chan…" Naruto took a step towards them, fist curled. "Hey, Baa-chan! Who was it?! Who was it who did that?!"

Tsunade turned to him, a look of devastation on her face. The councilors just glanced at one another, then Homura spoke.

"We aren't sure who did it. Yet." He glanced at Koharu and Tsunade.

"Then, who's the prime suspect?!" Naruto yelled.

Koharu cleared her throat, gaining Naruto's attention.

"Our only suspect right now… is you."


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

"The evidence found all indicates someone of your height, build, and weight. There was only one boot print that didn't match the victims, your size, and they found strands of your hair around the bodies. The wounds on the victims bodies also indicate multiple assailants, of a multitude, that in such close proximity to Konoha without being noticed, would only be capable in a Shadow Clone Jutsu, of which you are the only one who can make that many solid clones…" Sakura closed the newspaper, having skimmed over the important details.

"That's all they told me, too…" Naruto glanced through the glass wall of Konoha's Prison for Minor Offenders to Sakura. After being told that he was the only suspect, he had (loudly) vocalized his anger, but had gone quietly when Tsunade had given him A Look. Since he was only accused of the murders, and not convicted, he was only sent to a minor penitentiary, was allowed visitors, and Sakura made sure to keep him updated on any information in town related to the case. Seeing Sakura's sad state, Naruto shook his head and smiled.

"No worries Sakura-chan! They'll find the real culprit, and then you and I can train together again, like old times!"

Sakura smiled faintly back, but it faded quickly. She didn't have the heart to tell him that none of the villagers had helped her find information, or were even on his side, saying it had been a matter of time before he went crazy, for one reason or another, and that it was what he deserved. She gritted her teeth; it was if everyone knew a secret about Naruto that she didn't, something horrible that was known but not said. It burned inside, that they said things like that about Naruto, when he was so devoted to Konoha.

Both of them jumped as an ANBU came up behind Naruto.

"Alright you two, time's up."

"Right." Sakura stood up. "I'll be back as soon as I find anything else to help you out, Naruto." She gave him a reassuring smile. "See you!" starting to turn to go, she stopped.

"I almost forgot. Gaara is coming to Konoha with the diplomatic envoy from Suna." She sighed. "You're lucky, you won't have to deal with him."

"Thanks, Sakura." Naruto rolled his eyes angrily. Sakura realized what she'd said, apologized then made a hasty retreat under the ANBU's unending stare.

'Gaara, huh?' Naruto thought to himself as the ANBU lead him back to his cell.

If he hadn't been practicing diplomacy, Gaara would have killed all those old blowhard councilors. Ever since the war on Konoha during the Chunin exams, they had made sure to keep Suna under their thumb, making vague hints about how much weaker Suna was, and how their attack had only made Konoha stronger.

Bullshit.

He had seen Konoha on his way in. Despite the new buildings, it looked no different than before. People still walked the streets without a care, unheeding of any dangers that could be lurking in their very village (Gaara was one of these, even if it was temporary). There was no increase of security, except for where Gaara and the diplomatic dispatch were concerned.

And he was _stuck_ listening to these blowhards ramble on about a fight that broke out between two country border-control parties.

Feeling a pair of eyes on him, he glanced to his left. Kankuro was eyeing him warily, as if he was about to snap and kill everyone. If he were the type to do so, he would have rolled his eyes. Instead, he turned his glance into a glare, challenging Kankuro to say anything. The puppet master gulped, and turned his attention back to the debate. The next chance he got, Kankuro interjected, saying it was a good time for a break, and the meeting was given a recess.

Kankuro came up behind Gaara, who had situated himself on a balcony overlooking most of Konoha, staring up at the cloudy, darkening sky. From that angle, he couldn't see Gaara's expression, but then again, one couldn't tell much from it anyway. He could, however, discern Gaara's tenseness from the way he stood.

"Gaara…" Kankuro trailed off, uncertain what to say to make the Jinchuuriki relax. However, he had gotten Gaara's attention, so he had better say something.

"The meeting can wait. Why don't you find something to do for an hour or so?"

Gaara blinked, impassive.

"Without an escort? Konoha's ANBU would be on me in a minute. _Again_." He stressed the last word, forcing his brother to recall the guard who had harassed Gaara at the gate, to his misfortune. It was the mans' own fault, grabbing Gaara like that, Kankuro thought.

"As long as you don't do anything…questionable…. Konoha can't say anything." Kankuro smirked.

Gaara let out a small sigh, grabbed the railing, and jumped off. Kankuro relaxed, now that Gaara was off his back. Now to explain to the councilors where his psychopath of a little brother had gone.

Gaara had decided where to go before he had even finished talking to his brother. He waited, and stopped the first viable person he found.

"I'm looking for Uzumaki Naruto. Where does he live?"

Giving the foreigner a strange look, the vendor pointed down the road.

"Right down thataway. The Yamamono apartments. Don' know which number it is."

Without even a nod in acknowledgement, Gaara headed the direction the man had indicated, earning himself a few unheard mutterings about stone-faced, bad-mannered outsiders.

It took Gaara no time at all to find the apartment building, despite the dilapidated office sign. He strode right into the office, looked the secretary in the eye and said in an even voice (to him at least, the secretary thought she was about to die). "Uzumaki Naruto. Which apartment is his?"

"Uh-um, Uzumaki-kun isn't here r-right now." A twitch in Gaara's gaze made her flinch. "H-he's been arrested as a suspect for the murder of several shinobi in a mock battle right outside the walls!"

Gaara didn't move for a moment. His wide-eyed glare made the horrified secretary whimper and dive under the desk. He spun on his heel and disappeared before she even had the time to cover her head.


	3. Chapter 3

Due to Gaara's disappearance, the meeting had been adjourned for the day. Tsunade was situated back behind her desk, surveying reports, with Shizune in the background filing them away.

The Hokage had a total of about 4.6 seconds from noticing a presence in her hallway until it burst into her office. That is, 'it' being a highly angry and volatile Sabaku no Gaara. Tsunade didn't even glance up at him.

"First you leave the meeting without a word, then you barge into my office? I thought you were learning to be diplomatic, Gaara-san." Another paper was filed away under Gaara's torrid glare. Jarringly, he spoke.

"Naruto. Aren't there any other suspects?"

Tsunade blinked, caught off guard. He must have found someone to ask about Naruto almost as soon as he had left, for all the time that had passed. Shizune stood frozen behind Tsunade's chair, wide eyed.

"No." Tsunade looked away. "Naruto is still the only one." She paused. "…If the real culprit isn't found soon… Naruto will be convicted."

The way she said the word, it was obvious that 'convicted' did not mean 'sent to jail.'

"You're the Hokage, can't you postpone this or something?!"

"If there were evidence to suggest it wasn't Naruto, I could…" Tsunade slumped forward, head in hands. "And not only that, but every member of the council is pushing the sentence against him. There's nothing I can do…" she whispered.

"But you have to be able to do a thorough investigation! Find more evidence, other suspects! Naruto isn't the kind of person who would-"

"I KNOW THAT!" Tsunade yelled, slamming her fists on her desk. Shizune backed away from her boss, creeping towards the window, while Gaara was momentarily silenced.

"I know that." Tsunade repeated, quieter. "You and I both know that. But you must remember that Naruto is in the same kind of situation as you. It's easy-" Tsunade faltered, biting her lip. "It's easy for them to just blame him and be done with it! They all still hate him, they WANT to see him dead! They're so blind that that can't see Naruto from Kyuubi, and Naruto's paying for it! And with the entire council against me, there's nothing I can do to stop it!" She hung her head, to hide the tears stinging in her eyes.

The three stood in silence, Tsunade trying to reign in her emotions, Shizune unsure of what to do, and Gaara…

"If Naruto disappeared from prison, what would you do?"

Tsunade and Shizune's heads shot up to stare in wonder at Gaara.

"What did you say?!"

"If Naruto disappeared from prison, what would you do?" Gaara said slowly, as if explaining something to a child.

Tsunade looked at him in wonder.

"Are you suggesting-"

"I'm suggesting nothing." Gaara interjected, not missing a beat. "I'm merely asking a question…" he smirked, a barely perceptible uplifting of one side of the face, which was dramatic for Gaara, but a smirk nonetheless. "…Out of _curiosity._"

"Then, for _curiosity's_ sake, I'd have to say that if he were able to disappear quickly and without a trace, that all that could be done is a covert investigation, as to keep it from spreading to other Hidden Villages that we let him escape."

The smirk left Gaara's face. He stared at Tsunade, looking for something, a sign-

"…And if he were to successfully escape, he, and anyone who might have _helped_ him, would have my blessing."

That was all Gaara needed. Without another word, he spun around and left the Hokage's office almost as quickly as he had come.

Tsunade sighed, then flumped back into her chair and continued reviewing reports. Her aide stayed where she was, looking incredulously at her boss.

"Tsu-Tsunade-sama? Was that wise?" Shizune turned to the open door. "Telling him something like that?"

"I truthfully don't know." The Hokage paused. "But it's the only hope Naruto has…"

"But Naruto'll be-" Shizune choked.

"I know. He'll be labeled missing-nin…" Tsunade's hand was trembling, a report crumpled beyond recognition within it.

"…Unless he finds the real culprit, Naruto will never be Konoha-nin again, let alone Hokage."


End file.
